Ken Takakura

Known as the “Japanese Clint Eastwood,” Takakura Ken is well-known for his stoic, honorable presence throughout numerous Japanese and American film roles. He gained his tough guy persona from the streets of postwar Fukuoka, where he would watch yakuza turf battles, and got his big break at a 1955 Toei audition. The gangster film boom of the 1960s skyrocketed Ken into success, and he appeared in over 180 films during his 20 year stay at Toei Film Company. His international success can be attributed to Sydney Pollack’s 1975 sleeper hit, The Yakuza, as well as Ridley Scott’s Black Rain (1989) and the bankable comedy Mr. Baseball (1992). His best role is arguably that of Kuranosuke Oishi in Kon Ichikawa’s 47 Ronin, but his most recent success was in 2005 with Qian li zou dan qi (Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles), from Chinese director Zhang Yimou. Ken has received the Japanese Academy Award for Best Actor on four separate occasions, and has also received a score of other awards around the world. —AnimEigo